Hatani was absolutely furious.
The reason was simple: his kill had been stolen.
After taking down a Chunin, Sakumo Hatake had caught sight of Hatani charging straight toward the enemy Jonin. Abandoning his own rhythm and the enemy closest to him, Sakumo executed a one-handed Body Flicker to appear instantly by Hatani's side.
Hatani had just used a Vacuum Sphere-upgraded version of Focus Fire to clear the swarm. He was about to use the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu to mob the temporarily defenseless Kagebachi to death when Sakumo arrived. Sakumo unleashed an all-out strike, forcing Kagebachi to burn a pre-prepared Substitution Jutsu to survive the blow.
"Hatani, leave this one to me. Go deal with the Chunin!"
With that, Sakumo didn't even wait for a response before lunging after his target, successfully "snatching" Hatani's elite mob.
Unlike the Aburame clan, which was essentially a boys' club, the Kamizuru clan—who specialized in bees—placed women at the top of their hierarchy. Much like a beehive, the Queen ruled supreme.
While Kagebachi was a formidable fighter, the true core of this Kamizuru group was the middle-aged female ninja named Koubachi. As the "Queen Bee" who had steered the clan through its darkest years, she was the most cold-blooded and pragmatic of them all.
While Sakumo and Hatani were busy "competing" over kills, Koubachi had already fixed her gaze on Minato and Nonou, who had remained in their original positions.
More specifically, she was targeting Nonou.
It wasn't because she was jealous of the girl's youthful skin; it was because of Nonou's profession. From the way Nonou had handled the bees earlier, Koubachi had identified her as a medical ninja. Minato's defensive posture around the girl only confirmed her suspicion.
The value of a medical ninja was indisputable. They weren't quite as rare as giant pandas, but they were certainly an "endangered species" worth protecting.
Having realized that Sakumo Hatake was even more terrifying than the rumors suggested—killing a Chunin in a single pass—Koubachi no longer shared Kagebachi's confidence that they could escape under the cover of the remaining Chunin. If things continued like this, Kagebachi would likely have to sacrifice his life just to buy her a chance to flee alone.
If that happened, the already precarious future of the Kamizuru clan would be effectively severed. Koubachi was past forty; in the high-attrition, short-lived world of a shinobi, she had twenty years left at most. If the last of their Chunin and their only other Jonin died here, could she really sustain the clan until the next generation came of age?
She couldn't afford to take that gamble.
After weighing her options, she decided on the only viable move: capture the medical ninja and use her as a bargaining chip to force Sakumo Hatake to let them go.
It wasn't exactly an equal trade, but she was willing to bet on it. And even if the gamble failed, killing five Konoha ninja—including a medic—and returning with some intel should be enough of a result to satisfy the Tsuchikage. Perhaps then she could plead with Ohnoki to loosen the metaphorical noose around the clan's neck and let them finally breathe.
"Secret Art: Bee Clone!"
Her mind made up, Koubachi didn't hesitate. Nearby, Kagebachi's situation was already turning critical. She produced a clone, and both she and the double lunged toward Minato and Nonou.
The original went for Minato while the Bee Clone targeted Nonou, making it look as though she was focusing her main strength on the boy.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
Minato didn't dare to be careless. He unleashed a gust of wind to stall her, intending to rush to Nonou's side to protect her or carry her away.
Unfortunately, even with her feint, Koubachi couldn't quite fool Minato's instincts.
"Earth Style: Rock Fist!"
Instead of dodging the Great Breakthrough, Koubachi condensed a massive amount of Earth Style chakra around her fist, making it appear larger than her own head. With a fierce shout, the sheer pressure of her punch dispersed the incoming wind. Without slowing down, she pressed her attack on Minato.
His expression grim, Minato was forced to halt his retreat. He couldn't risk turning his back or side to Koubachi to support Nonou; he had to meet the threat head-on.
"Secret Art: Bee Dispersal!"
As Minato was tied down in combat, the Bee Clone reached Nonou. Nonou raised her hand, glowing with the Mystical Palm Technique, intending to disrupt the clone's chakra and force it to destabilize. To her horror, the clone suddenly dissolved of its own accord into a literal swarm of bees. They swirled around her, threatening to encase her in a living cocoon of insects.
"Substitution Jutsu!"
Despite her panic, Nonou didn't fumble. Relying on the precise chakra control inherent to medical ninja, she completed her seals just as the cocoon closed. She swapped places with a log, narrowly escaping the immediate trap.
But Koubachi, viewing the girl's capture as their only lifeline, wasn't about to give up.
"Earth Style: Split Earth Turning Palm!"
After forcing Minato back with another Rock Fist—as he didn't dare trade blows with her directly—she rapidly wove a set of signs and slammed her palm into the ground.
Rumble!
With a roar of shifting stone, the earth split open. A fissure raced forward with blinding speed, reaching the feet of the still-shaken Nonou just as she reappeared.
Caught off guard, Nonou plummeted into the pit. She barely managed to catch the ledge, her hands straining to keep her from falling further into the dark crevice.
Seeing this, Minato felt he had no choice. He used the Body Flicker to vanish. Taking advantage of the moment Koubachi was finishing her jutsu, he reappeared behind her and drove a shuriken toward the base of her skull.
Koubachi seemed too obsessed with capturing Nonou to notice. The blade sank into the back of her head.
But there was no joy on Minato's face. On the contrary, he immediately let go of the weapon and tried to leap back.
He was a second too late.
Koubachi's body turned into a thick, viscous beeswax, trapping Minato's hand firmly. The substance seemed to have a life of its own, crawling up his arm in an attempt to envelop him completely.
"Beeswax Substitution!"
The real Koubachi finally appeared beside the pit. She spared a contemptuous glance for the struggling Minato before turning her attention to the trapped girl.
"Secret Art: Bee Chrysalis!"
A fresh swarm of bees surged forward.
In the depths of the pit, Nonou Yakushi's eyes filled with absolute despair.
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